Which of the following statements are valid for postcolonial theory and literature?
(A) Abrogation, resistance and assertion form the basis of postcolonial thought.
(B) Postcolonial theory defends binaries of Master and Slave, White and Black, and Coloniser and Colonised.
(C) Weep Not, Child is the first novel in English by an East African Writer, Ngugi Wa Thiong’o.
(D) Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys is based on the experiences of colonized African population.
(E) Homi K. Bhabha, Edward W. Said and Gayatri Spivak are important postcolonial thinkers.
Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below:

The correct option is (A), (C) and (E) Only.

Let us analyze each statement step-by-step to understand why this option is correct:

Statement (A): "Abrogation, resistance and assertion form the basis of postcolonial thought."
This statement is valid. Postcolonial theory relies heavily on the concepts of abrogation (the rejection of the colonizer's control over language and culture), resistance (active opposition to colonial rule and hegemony), and assertion (reclaiming identity, voice, and cultural agency). These concepts are fundamental to postcolonial literature and criticism.

Statement (B): "Postcolonial theory defends binaries of Master and Slave, White and Black, and Coloniser and Colonised."
This statement is invalid. Postcolonial theory does not defend these binaries; instead, it critiques, deconstructs, and exposes them as tools used by colonizers to justify domination and establish racial and cultural hierarchies.

Statement (C): "Weep Not, Child is the first novel in English by an East African Writer, Ngugi Wa Thiong’o."
This statement is valid. Weep Not, Child, published in 1964, was written by Kenyan author Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o and is widely recognized as the first novel in English published by an East African writer.

Statement (D): "Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys is based on the experiences of colonized African population."
This statement is invalid. Jean Rhys's Wide Sargasso Sea (1966) serves as a postcolonial prequel to Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre. It is set in the Caribbean (specifically Jamaica and Dominica) and deals with Creole identity, the aftermath of the Emancipation Act, and Caribbean colonial dynamics, rather than the experiences of the colonized African population in Africa.

Statement (E): "Homi K. Bhabha, Edward W. Said and Gayatri Spivak are important postcolonial thinkers."
This statement is valid. These three figures are universally acknowledged as the "Holy Trinity" of postcolonial theory. Edward Said founded the field with Orientalism, Gayatri Spivak introduced critical subaltern studies, and Homi Bhabha developed influential concepts like hybridity and mimicry.

Therefore, only statements (A), (C), and (E) are correct.